Thanksgiving in Montana

Seth hadn't ridden the Ferris wheel at Scheels yet so Ryker and Kya insisted!

The 4-H kids were putting on a carnival at the Metra.

This was the human hungry hippo game.  Really funny for the parents and fun for the kids.

TNT blowing up the balloon.  This was just a bicycle pump hooked to a balloon.  Kya was racing another kid to try to pop her balloon first.   Great games!

Of course Ryker wanted to do this.  It was a dark booth with laser beams crossing everywhere and you had to try to get out with out hitting one and making it buzz.

Yes!  Plinko!  These 4-H-ers know how to through a carnival!

On this one you had to pull on the strings, raising the circle to the top without the ball falling out into one of the cut out shapes.

Ryker made it all the way up this one. 

1st cake walk!  1st win!

Kya is really not happy about Keaton's first win here.  She prides herself on being a "cake walk champ."  She always seems to luck out and win while Ryker never does.  She was so excited to go do the cake walk with Keaton and was telling us about all her previous wins on the way over to it.  Her number wasn't called and I started cheering because Keaton was on the winning number.  Her face went from disappointment to absolute shock.  Haha  Not only did she not win, but this new comer that didn't even know why he was stepping on paper numbers did!  I told her to come help Keaton pick out a cake and didn't really want to and she was sure he was going to get chocolate so she wouldn't even want any.  I couldn't stop laughing at house seriously annoyed she was.  Of course, Keaton didn't have a preference so I directed him to the half chocolate/half white cake.  He was so happy after he realized he got to take the cake and he kept telling her about it.  It was so funny.  If you ever want to get her goat, just ask her about the time Keaton won the cake walk!  I do it all the time.

Oh this guy.....

Kara and Brian gave the kids gift cards to their favorite store, Scheels for early Christmas presents so they could shop over Thanksgiving when we were there.  Ryker got himself 2 airsoft guns and couldn't have been happier.

Kase photobomb

 

We took Keaton with us to Wibaux and Brian and Kara were joining us the next day.  There was all kinds of ruckus and laughing in the back.  I turned around to this and Ryker and Kya putting on some sort of show for him.  I have a video of it that I sent to Kara because it seemed scarier than funny to me, but Keaton wouldn't stop laughing so Ryker and Kya kept doing weird things and making scary voices.

Target practice

Keaton headed to the park.  We were all stopped at the bike jumps, but he got out of the wagon and said he was going.

We were out looking for a porcupine that someone had shot to pull some quills.  We didn't find it, but we did have fun looking.

Christmas cookie time!

Kase's baptism. 

Emery, all smiles as usual!

Kara, Father Jolly, Brian, Robin, and Dusty

 

Begger and I doing what Begger and I used to do best.....have too much fun! 

November Days

Ryker gave Kya his face painting kit.  He rarely used it, but she paints faces like crazy.

She's getting so good too........so good that I can't even tell what I was right now looking at the pic.  haha.  I think I was a butterfly and she was a clown this day.

Fun day at gymnastics class.  Got to bust out the parachute!  Kya is in the orange shirt on the right.

 

Kya's feet ghosts.  She traced everyone in the house.  I think these are mine and Ryker's.

The kids got Johnny Picasso gift cards for their birthdays so they painted up a storm this winter.  I think they each made 3 items.

Time to work on the fort.

I always get after Kya when she tells me something is too hard or she isn't strong enough because I think she should be able to do it.  Then there are moments like these where all the kids her age are dropping off the wall because the can hold themselves up or don't try when it gets hard and I'm reminded just how strong she is for her age.  She holds all the strength stuff the longest and usually with good form.  Must be those  kids yoga videos she brings home from the library.

Wrestling medal from the Anacortes meet and his finished mug!  Yes, technically it is a stein and we laughed hysterically when he picked it out, but he didn't want one of the smaller mugs.  He uses it as his water glass pretty much every day.

We don't have many super cold days, but this was one of the few so we sat by the fire, drank tea, and read books.

 

Checking on the salmon run at the Werder's house turned into tree climbing. 

 

Over the Hill

Seth turned the big 4-0 in November.  I kept telling the kids he was going to be over the hill.  They had so many questions about what this over the hill thing meant that I had a little fun exaggerating the answers.  I would make comments like "better play tetherball with dad now because he'll be too old to play after the 11th" and comments about him forgetting their names and stuff.  I finally had to lay off after they both seemed a little worried.  I think they expected him to wake up on his birthday morning gray and wrinkly with a mild case of Alzheimer's.  They were relieved when he looked the same and still seemed to function like the young, athletic, strong dad they were used to.

Of course, we got him crap.  I never have good birthday present ideas for him and if I do buy him something, we don't save it for his birthday.  I figured at least the kids would like this book by Dr. Seuss, You're Only Old Once.  It turned out to be one of Seuss' worst books so don't run out and buy it.

And what 40 year old birthday would be complete without "Buttface" soap.  The kids thought it was hilarious, with labels so you knew which side to wash your face with and which side to wash your butt with.  You can imagine who actually used the soap....the 2 little buttfaces.

Lastly, another apple slicer.  We already have one that gets used almost daily, but this one makes the slices even smaller.....you know, for old men whose teeth are about to fall out.

Happy Birthday Old Fart!